Meaning & usage
なくて is the negative form turned into a te-form, so it links a negative clause to what follows. It commonly marks a cause or reason, and after nouns or な-adjectives it appears as じゃなくて or ではなくて to mean 'not X but Y'. It follows the negative form of verbs and い-adjectives, and nouns or な-adjectives with じゃ/で.
Example sentences 8
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よく聞いたら、ネタじゃなくてマジボケだったみたいです。
When I asked afterwards it seems he hadn't said that as a joke.
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私はメアリーではなくてトムにそのニュースを話した。
I told the news to Tom, not to Mary.
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問題なのは何を読むかではなくてどう読むかである。
It is not what you read but how you read that matters.
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行きたくなくてもそこへ行かなければならない。
You have to go there whether you like it or not.
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大切なのはどの大学を出たかではなくて、大学で何を学んだかである。
What is important is not which university you've graduated from but what you've learned in the university.
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食物は生きる上でなくてはならないものだ。
Food is essential to life.
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行きたくなくても行かなければなりません。
You've got to go even if you don't want to.
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行きたくなくても行かなくてはなりません。
You've got to go even if you don't want to.